Sampling and testing of body fluids is common for both testing and monitoring the human body for any number of biochemical or physiological conditions and, of course, for determining the general state of health of an individual.
Use of saliva as a testing medium is often preferable due to its availability without intrusive methods such as is required in sampling of blood. Urine samples, although non invasive, require patient monitoring during sampling to insure integrity. Accordingly, the use of saliva as a medium in biochemical and physiological analysis is desirable since it can be obtained by non-invasive methods and is easily monitored.
In addition, saliva has been found to be a very reliable carrier of analyte indicators and lateral flow chromatographic immunoassays which are useful for the qualitative detection of amphetamines, methamphetamine, cocaine, opiates, THC and their metabolites and other drugs of misuse and substances along with applications including nucleic acid markers and viral infections such as HIV.
Although saliva may be advantageously used in the analysis of a patient's biochemistry, problems still remain in the collection of saliva and in the handling thereof by laboratory technicians. As in the testing of any body fluid, minimum exposure due to handling is of utmost importance.
The present invention is directed to a fluid collection and testing device which facilitates a separation of saliva from a collector and enables drip-free and easy isolation of the saliva specimen in a container.